The modification of polymers can produce materials with considerable commercial applicability, finding uses as dispersants, blend compatibilizers, surfactants, surface modifiers, colloidal stabilizers, stain release agents, encapsulants, binding agents, viscosity modifiers, and (in some cases) precursors to ionomers. Important synthetic targets within this area are polymers containing carboxylic acid, hydroxyl, amine or thiol segments, due to their high polarity and water miscibility.
Additionally, modified materials containing hydroxyl or (more importantly) acid/anhydride functional groups are of interest for reactive grafting or blending applications, due to the ability of the anhydride to interact with monomeric or oligomeric amines and alcohols resulting in grafted block copolymers. Reactive blend compatibilization can also be achieved through use of these functional block copolymers.